MAJOR PROTEST TO BE STAGED IN PROTEST AGAINST COMBINED AUTHORITY PLAN

West Midlands MEPs James Carver and Bill Etheridge are urging people from across the region to attend a major protest against plans to create a combined Birmingham and Black Country authority.

UKIP MEPs James Carver and Bill Etheridge will are calling on Black Country and Birmingham folk to attend the protest in Dudley on December 1 and in turn send out a message to the political leaders of other parties “Hands off Birmingham and Hands off the Black Country”.

Mr Carver, who is UKIP’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate in Stourbridge, and Mr Etheridge, UKIP’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate in Dudley North, are totally opposed to the creation of a combined authority – an EU-led regionalisation drive which the MEPs say is an anti-democratic “Labour Party Stitch Up” which will damage the district identities of Birmingham and the Black Country.

The “Hands off Birmingham, Hands off the Black Country” protest will take place outside Dudley Council House at 5.15pm on December 1, ahead of the planned Full Council meeting later that evening.

James Carver MEP said: “This EU-led regionalisation push is a huge threat to the identities of both Birmingham and the Black Country and I urge people to attend this protest and in turn send out a message to those who want to see the establishment of this colossal combined authority.

“This whole idea is a Labour Party stitch as it is the Labour-run authorities in Walsall, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Birmingham who want to sign away our local democracies to create a combined authority. Our message is clear on this – hands off Birmingham and hands off the Black Country.”

Bill Etheridge MEP said: “This protest will mark the launch of our concerted campaign against regionalisation and a combined authority.

“We don’t want to see the centralisation of power. We believe local people should have a real say, at a localised level, about issues that concern them. The shift of power away from the people will deeply damage local democracy and accountability. UKIP will fight this.”